Co-ops - What do you think of them?

[Panthira]

nak

I've recently discovered co-ops, well... rediscovered anyway, and I was wondering if you all know of some good ones for organic fabrics? I'm not a knitter (yet) but I can sew a mean stitch now and then, and I'd like to start making organic clothing and bedding.

In the meantime, have you seen the Under the Nile co-op in the Trading Post? I've seen Rachel there, I believe. I'm in the process of trying to convert our household into a organic one. My children and I have have so many skin sensitivities, not to mention my allergies, that I've found organic clothing and bedding seems to help a lot. I bought an Under the Nile blanket awhile back and paid full price for it, and with this co-op you can get everything 1/2 off.

Have any of you had bad experiences with the co-op or trading post here on MDC?

[allnaturalmama]

Hi, I'm Jennifer, and I'm addicted to organic co-ops.

Organic Co-op
organic wool (!) and organic cottons, including printed fabrics

The Fabric Farm
regularly co-ops organic cottons, currently co-oping 100% bamboo fabrics

Cloth Essentials Co-op
another great source of organic cottons, currently co-oping bamboo/oc blends

All Natural Fabrics
she has organic short loop velour available now

Diaper Fabrics 2
non-organic wool, organic cotton

Gaea's Garden
organics other than fabrics, like tights for women and girls, just did a Sigg drinking bottle co-op

Green Tara Mama
the be-all and end-all for shopping for the organic lifestyle: bedding, toys, shoes, clothing, etc, etc - great discussions, too, for natural living, very active


Oh, and no bad experiences with co-ops or the TP, unless you're talking to my bank account!

[Spark]

GREAT co-op experiences through MDC. I have only one negative experience, but it wasn't through MDC. Order just never got placed and it took many months to get a refund.

I HEART co/ops!

[spiralmg]

Hi, My Name is Linda and I am living in a fog,

I've never done a co-op - can someone explain how it works? I've poked around but didn't quite figure it out. It would be great to participate...

[Panthira]

nak

Um, well..
It's like a group of people all get together to make a large purchase, but at reduced or wholesale prices. Do I have the description correct?

[spiralmg]

nak - How do they work tho?

for example. i was reallyactually thinking if doing this but didn't know how it worked:

i found some chinese mei-tai-like carriers in chinatown for cheap and was going to see if anyone here in our DDDC would want them - then i could go ask for a discount. but then how would i get them to everybody, split the cost, for example? ( would this be a co-op? if so....???)

[allnaturalmama]

Yep, you do, Panthira.

To be a little more specific, if it's on the MDC co-ops and swaps board, all the pertinent info about the co-op is usually in the first post of the thread, and people usually post their order to the thread. If it's a Yahoo group co-op, the important information is usually in the "files" section of the group's website, and people usually post their order to a database in the group.

Of course, the administration of a co-op can vary widely, based on the preferences of the person running it, but they typically follow this type of schedule:

The co-op sponsor announces the co-op, pricing, closing date, and possible co-op fees. Up until the closing date, people may post their orders. Once the co-op closes, payment is due, sometimes immediately, sometimes within a few days. This payment is usually the cost of products plus a co-op fee.

Then, the sponsor places one giant consolidated order on behalf of all the co-op participants. When the order arrives to her, she will sort it and package it up for each of the participants, and announce how much additional money people owe for their share of the shipping of the entire order to her and for their personal items to be shipped from her to them. Once the second payment for shipping is made, she will mail you the items that you ordered.

Often, co-ops can take quite a while. I think the fastest one I ever participated in took about 3 weeks for my items to arrive, but I've been in ones that take 3 months or longer. So, you have to be patient, but you do get a good deal.

Make sense? I can explain even more about the Yahoo group fabric co-ops if you'd like.

[allnaturalmama]

Originally Posted by spiralmg

i found some chinese mei-tai-like carriers in chinatown for cheap and was going to see if anyone here in our DDDC would want them - then i could go ask for a discount. but then how would i get them to everybody, split the cost, for example? ( would this be a co-op? if so....???)

Yes, this would be a co-op. You would have to find out the exact price, let everybody know, then perhaps charge a small fee (like a dollar or less) to cover your gas, ink, paper, etc. You would have package everybody's mei tai up, and calculate each package's shipping. Or, you could keep it simple and just add $4.05 to everyone's order and do Priority Shipping across the board. If you went that way, then you could get all your Priority-branded packing supplies free from USPS.

[Taedareth]

If you have to pay extra fees for shipping on the whole order to the co-op leader, then shipping your stuff to your house, and an additional fee for participating in the co-op.... then do you really save any money??

And how do you know they won't just keep the money you Paypal'd to them and never mail your stuff?

[Panthira]

With the Under the Nile co-op, I'm getting everything half off. For example, if I order a twin blanket (my daughter wants one of those so bad), it would normally be $118, but I can get it for $59 through the co-op. The co-op organizer I think is charging $1.50 for her fee, and even with shipping I have a good deal for a blanket.
I have the same question about the paypal thing. I even contacted an administrator here on MDC about it. She said it's at our own risk and to follow our intiution.
I'm participating in a Frontier co-op on MDC and for some reason I feel confident I'll get my order, but the Under the Nile one, I don't know how to feel. I don't really know the organizer, so perhaps one of you all can answer that last question had. It does make me nervous, and probably why my daughter won't get her cherished organic blanket this time.

[aisraeltax]

i loved the Under teh Nile coop. this is the second one ive particiated in b/c the discount is go great. shipping is a bit more expensive, but its totally better than buying full price from UTN. their stuff is just great. they have these prefolds that are really stretchy!! i love putting them on Ethan. when he goes through them, i immediately wash again!!!
ive had only good experiences.

[judybean]

darn jen.... she got me all excited about co-ops over on the diaper making board, so i had to sign up for the bamboo fabric one... i sure hope the minimum gets met so the order can be placed, i'm quite eager to try bamboo fabric!

(and now i may have to go check out the short loop ov one.... i short loop, but only have long loop and i'm just not so keen on it)

[aisraeltax]

one other thing (feeling better now, as you can see). pymt. via paypal does have a insurance policy. though not perfect and certainly not the quickest thing in the world, if you are specific in what you are purchasing and don't receive it, pp will refund your $$$.